If you want to experience living in an old Indochina town, you have to visit Singkawang! If you are not familiar yet, Singkawang is located in West Kalimantan, Indonesia. It's 3 hours far from capital city Pontianak, and it's known as 'Kota 1000 Klenteng' or 'A 1000 Temple Town'. When I first visited Singkawang, I was so mesmerized by the city architecture. Most of the buildings are still maintaining their old and original design. It felt like I was visiting Indonesia in the 70s - 80s. Singkawang is dominated by three big groups of tribe which is Chinese, Malay and Dayak. So, the building, the food and basically the culture is the combination of that three tribes. In this post, I will share about the best foods to try when you're in Singkawang. My husband and his sister were born and raised in Singkawang so they know best the OG (original) and best Singkawang's cuisine, and they were the one who introduced me to all of these foods which I approve, so I think you'll love it!
1. Chai Kue Sak Kok
This is hands down the best chai kue in town and the best chai kue that I ever tasted! Chai kue or choi pan is a steamed vegetable dumpling that's usually eaten with chili sauce. Here, they have three different variations of filling: jicama (bengkuang), chives (kucai) & bamboo shoots (rebung) with the mixed of dried shrimp (ebi) and fried garlic on top. The sauce is light, watery and a mixed of sweet, spicy and sour. I usually ordered the jicama and chives because I don't really like bamboo shoots personally. The OG chai kue is small, and they make the traditional one in here so I usually eat like 10 - 20pcs myself because it's just THAT good. Besides chai kue, I really love their Es Tahu (soy milk). If you want to order the chai kue in a big quantity it's best to make a pre order first by phone. You can find the place on google map but it might be hard to find because the place is hidden and there's no signage on the street or at the shop. The place is small, semi outdoor, very traditional, and there's only limited parking space, people might find it inconvenient but I really like the place!
Phone: +62 562 635662 Location: Sakkok, Sedau, Kec. Singkawang Selatan
2. Rujak Thai Phui Ji
Everything in here is just delicious! Rujak is a fruit salad topped with peanut sauce. Different than most rujak in Java (my hometown), in Singkawang they added the topping with dried shrimp (ebi) and emping or melinjo crackers. My favorites are their mango rujak, limui kerupuk (crackers with peanut sauce) and sop asin (vermicelli soup with anchovy, nut, and beef)! But everything else is just as good! For drink you can try their cendol (coconut milk with green jelly and palm sugar) or es campur (shaved ice with mixed fruits). They are located in the small hallway between houses. You can easily find the stall because they are usually packed and they have the big signage. Expect a long queue on a weekend or holiday season. If you are in Jakarta, you can also try their branch at Tambora, West Jakarta, which is also managed by the same family.
Phone: +62 852 4512 3678
3. Bubur Gunting Abang Kacamata
After trying out many bubur gunting stalls, for me this one is the best! There are two bubur gunting stalls in Jl. Antasari, and this stall is the small one. I have tried the other one, but I like this one better. Bubur gunting or scissor porridge is a slimy porridge made of sticky rice flour and soy with crunchy/fried cakue and original/soft cakue. Most of bubur gunting that I tried in Singkawang only served with the original cakue, I like this bubur gunting the most because they use two different cakues and the combination between those two is just heavenly! The taste of bubur gunting is a mixed between sweet and savory. It's best to eat bubur gunting for breakfast, or pre-breakfast if you feel that the portion is too small.
Phone: +62 821 5997 555
4. Rujak Se Moi
My husband loves es nona so much and we have tried a lot of es nona, but we didn't find the OG one until we tried es nona at Rujak Se Moi. Es nona or 'lady ice' is a shaved ice with papaya sweets, fermented cassava (tape), red bean and grass jelly (cincau). The taste of es nona that they have is perrrrfect to our liking! The portion is also perfect for me because it is not too small but also not too big. This place opens on the evening at around 6.00 pm, and it is quite crowded at night. Besides es nona, they also sell rujak, sop asin, and limui just like at Thai Phui Ji, but I still like the Thai Phui Ji better so I only recommend the es nona!
Phone: +62 813 5217 8937 Location: Rujak Se Moi - Jl. Padang Pasir No. 14, Sedau, Kec. Singkawang Selatan
5. Tet Fai
Tet Fai is famous for their srikaya bread and they have several branches in Singkawang and Jakarta. They have five variations of bread: original - toasted, original - fried, original - steamed, pandan - toasted, and pandan - steamed. Everything is delicious but I like the original toasted and original steamed the most. Paired them with coffee, tea or thai tea for the best experience, and you will thank me later. They also sell the srikaya jam in a jar and donut with various toppings. They only sell the foods for takeaway so there's no space to sit and hang out here.
Phone: +62 852 1055 8863, +62 813 1823 2228 Location: Jl. GM Situt No.1A, Pasiran, Kec. Singkawang Barat
6. Bubur Pekong
This was the first time I tried porridge with anchovy for topping. I was reluctant to try at first because I don't like fishy food, but surprisingly the bubur (porridge) was good and I liked it! Different from the porridge in Jakarta that usually filled with yellow broth, this porridge use clear broth with the same topping as sop asin which is anchovy, nuts, beef, celery and melinjo crackers. They only open in the morning started from 6.00 am, and they sold quickly especially in a weekend or holiday. Besides the porridge, the beef satay in here is also good! People also come here for the black coffee but because I'm not a coffee drinker I can't give it a review. I really love having a breakfast in here because I can enjoy the hustle bustle of the city as it is located at the heart of the town, near the oldest temple in Singkawang. I also love the hallway that is used as the extension of the shop because all the buildings are old and still maintain their traditional design, very aesthetic! Bonus, you can also bird-watching while you're enjoying your breakfast here.
Phone: -
Location: Jl. Niaga, Melayu, Kec. Singkawang Barat
7. Sotong Kangkung & Sotong Pangkong
Another weird food that I was reluctant to try in the beginning was Sotong Kangkung and Sotong Pangkong. Sotong is a squid-like fish called Nus fish, and Pangkong is Malay language for hit, it literally means hit squid because the squid is hit until it is flat. We can only find two places that sell sotong in Singkawang as it's usually sold only in Ramadan season. This is the most legit sotong shop as the other one is just a stall at the park and sell the sotong pangkong only. You have to try both of the sotongs as they served in a different ways. Sotong kangkung consists of water spinach with boiled sotong and topped with peanut, slimy/sticky sauce and fish sauce. The taste of sotong kangkung is sweet and sour. While sotong pangkong is a dried sotong that's grilled and hit so it's easier to eat. It is served with watery chili sauce, and the taste is sweet, savory and sour. Sotong kangkung and pangkong are usually eaten as a snack, but because the portion is too big for me, I ate it as a dinner lol. The price of sotong is quite expensive for me, but it's worth to try at least for once!
Phone: +62 812 5768 979
Location: Jl. Pasar Turi No 52 - 53
8. Mie Tiau Kidal
Mie tiau or as usually known as kwetiau is Chinese fried flat noodle mixed with egg, bean sprouts and daun katuk/ cangkok manis/ sweet leaf. In Jakarta, kwetiau is usually mixed with egg, bean sprouts and sawi hijau/ pakchoi/ Chinese cabbage, and sometimes it can be customized with other fillings like beef, shrimp, squid, shredded chicken, liver, gizzard, meat ball, sausage, etc - depends on who cook it. But here in Singkawang most of the places sell the original Chinese style. Even though there's not many variations for the filling but the taste is still amazing! I really like the smoky taste of mie tiau; added with other condiments like sambal and lime then boooom! The place is actually doesn't have a name but since the chef is lefthanded (kidal in Indonesia) so people usually called this place as Mie Tiau Kidal. The place has a blue roof and cart, and is located at Jl. Yos Sudarso beside JNE outlet and in front of Bakso Solo. There are also three other mie tiau stalls near this place, so make sure you don't get to the wrong one. I haven't tried the other stall actually, but my sister said this one is the best and I trust her taste so I don't bother to try another mie tiau. They open around 11 am until 11 pm depends on the availability.
Phone: -
Location: Jl. Yos Sudarso beside JNE outlet
9. Bakmi Kering H. Aman
I am a sucker for noodle, I love to try different kind of noodle dish, including this Bakmi Kering. Bakmi kering means dry noodle. I don't know why they named it after 'dry' because the noodle is not even dry like an i fu mi (deep fried noodle). This bakmi has different fillings than the usual bakmi that I usually eat. Most of the time I eat bakmi with chicken, Chinese cabbage, bean sprout, meatball and pangsit / fried dumpling. But in bakmi kering you'll find telur dadar/ omelette, bean sprout, meatball, steamed pangsit/ dumpling, kekian/ fried prawn, and chicken or beef depending on your order. They serve it with broth as a side dish like any other bakmi. What I love the most about bakmi kering is their sambal. They use the mixed of chili and galangal and it smells and tastes so good! Besides bakmi kering, they also have bakmi rebus which means the noodle and the broth on the same bowl, also meatball, fried rice, mie tiaw and many more. I haven't tried the other menu because I came here only when I crave to eat bakmi kering.
Phone: -
10. Bakso Sapi 21
This is the best bakso/ meatball in Singkawang, end of discussion! The queue was so long every time I came here, but it's really worth the wait. There are 4 variants menu that you can choose, but the most complete one (which I think you should try) consists of meatball, tofu, beef, beef tendon and tripe. Plus you can add either rice (it's common to eat meatball with rice in Singkawang), yellow noodle, vermicelli, kwetiau or mixed noodle to your meatball soup. Everything tastes so good including the broth, plus they also use sambal lengkuas/ galangal just like in bakmi kering H. Aman, so extra point from me! Don't forget to try their es namong (fermented lime) or es jeruk kecil (lime) if you come here, so refreshing!
Phone: +62 853 5076 9799
11. Gorengan Bukit Roban
I really like bakwan (vegetable fritters) from Pontianak, and I just knew that Singkawang has the same bakwan and it was so good! I knew this from my brother who brought us this bakwan alongside with another gorengan/ fried food like fried banana, fried cassava and fried tofu. When the first time I tried it, I loved it instantly and I asked my husband to come to the place because it would be very great to eat this while still hot. So, after we finished swimming in the river, we visited the place because they are near. It was quite packed, even though it was raining outside. And I was so happy because the sensation that I got when I ate the hot bakwan after swim on a rainy day was just fenomenal! :p What differs bakwan Pontianak and Singkawang with bakwan in Java is that they add anchovy/ dried shrimp on top of the bakwan. Plus they use watery sambal as a condiment, not chili sauce nor cabe rawit (hot chili). I love their bakwan the most but you can also try other fried foods. The place is located at Bukit Roban, behind Thai Pak Kung temple which is also a jogging track for the runners. There are two stalls that sell the same gorengan, but the one that I tried and the one that was recommended by my husband's friend was the second one or at the top.
Phone: -
Location: Roban, Singkawang Tengah
12. Pisang Goreng Sudarso "Aqu"
When I was a kid, my mom used to bring me to Gramedia Matraman book store to shop books and other school supplies. Everytime we went there, we bought fried banana from the stall at the basement parking lot which I think is the best fried banana that I ever tried, and I still remember the taste until today. Sadly, the last time I went there I couldn't find the stall and I haven't found its replacement. But then, I tried this fried banana and surprisingly the taste was soooo close to my favorite fried banana so I'm very happy and this is very personal because it brought back childhood memory. This pisang goreng shaped like a handheld fan. I really like their banana because they use the kind of banana that doesn't have the sour taste. The fried banana is so crunchy and not too sweet. I really enjoyed them while still hot. This place is quite famous and a lot of people order it in a big quantity so do expect a queue. Each fried banana costs IDR 3,000 for original banana (pisang kepok) and IDR 4,000 for king banana.
Phone: +62 8953 6684 7483
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